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Thursday, October 07, 2004

out-of-towners

Joe's parents are arriving tonight for a weekend visit to New York. I have a great relationship with "the in-laws," even though it sounds funny to call them that, like something out of some middle-class sitcom starring Ray Romano or some such thing. We have some tentative plans for the weekend, including such touristy activities as going to the top of the Empire State Building tomorrow night, and a walking tour through Chinatown and Little Italy on Saturday. Saturday evening, Joe's parents (who are Italian) are making some sort of gigantic pasta dinner, and my parents are coming over to partake in the goodness. Chinese and Italian people living in harmony. How very Marco Polo.

In other out-of-towner news, there's a new medical student doing a PICU Sub-I, visiting New York from the midwest. This medical student took his first call in tandem with me last night. Now, I'm a sympathetic person, and was a medical student myself just a year and a half ago. I know it's hard to strike that balance between being engaged and interested and being a total stalker. I've precepted my share of med students and enjoyed working with most of them. But sometimes, sometimes, it's just really annoying to have a med student on your tail.

I just need a little space, man. I mean, you're a 4th year med student, one less than a year away from internship, I think it's time to learn to work independently. Fly out of the nest, little bird! Do you really have to be right at my shoulder as I'm checking patient labs? As I scroll through vitals? As I write my notes? Don't you have your own things to do for your patients? Are you going to follow me into the bathroom too? I mean, honestly, it can't be that interesting to just follow me around for 24 hours straight. I was so relieved when he finally went to lay down on call overnight, I was afraid that his next move would be to physically crawl into my clothing so that we could be that much closer.

Currently reading:"The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook," planning the itinerary for our trip. There's this one hike that I really want to do, but I'm nervous about committing to it, because I'm not exactly the world's most outdoorsy person, and the hike is 11 miles long (if you count walking back to your car at the end of the trail). What if I wimp out or crack my damn head open and we have to get airlifted out? On the plus side, that's a free helicopter ride.